Slowburn

Chapter 99 (Renzo's POV)

        I was sitting at my usual table in my brother's restaurant. It was closed down, but there was still movement in here because I had my guys running leads and reporting back to me. We basically know it was the Van Dijk kid who stabbed that threat into Kat's door, but for matters like this one I wanted to be 100% sure. 

If there are other threats to her safety I want to know about it. 

Leaning back, I had one hand on my lap and the other was stretched in front of me on the table, while my finger tapped its surface. I'm restless, but the false calm has come over me again, and I am waiting. Waiting for answers, waiting for my goons, waiting for the outcome of all this. 

        "Ren" my brother's voice pulled me from my thoughts. He had just walked up to the table I was alone at. "Want anything from the back?" I stopped my tapping finger and raised my hand to signify that I did not want anything. Rocco gave me some pressed expression and nodded okay. He went into the back and my finger started tapping again.

When the front door of the restaurant opened, Matteo, my round bellied goon came walking through it. "Boss" he nodded to me in respect before approaching. He was smart enough not to make me ask for any updates. He began to report back to me right away. 

"We checked traffic footage in the local area and traced it back to Sven Van Dijk. We have full confirmation" he told me. My finger stopped tapping. 

        "Good. And what are you doing now to find the mother fucker?" I would scour the street myself, but I need to run point on everything because many things are happening at once. I had a goon keep an eye on Moretti's movements to be sure he had nothing to do with it in retaliation for how badly I embarrassed him last week. 

I have my guards reporting back to me every couple of hours on the compound's security status, and Kat if anyone ever sees her. I already had guys casing out the well known areas that the Van Dijk crime family run operations or just the places where they hang out.

        "We've had eyes on the old man since the start of this and his movements show no obvious signs of anything out of the ordinary. Same for most of his other guys. We think Sven might be working alone on this, but we'll still keep watch on the others to see if anyone can lead us back to Sven. He's definitely in hiding sir. No one's caught sight of him at all" Matteo lifted his pants halfway up his belly and stood in waiting for my next command. 

"Of course he's in hiding. The little snake. Call a sit down with old Van Dijk. I'm going straight to the top on this" I ordered my goon to go away. His eyes went wide at this request. I know why. It's because if old Van Dijk, or any of his other men, are involved and I call a sit down they'll know I know and they'll come guns blazing. 

But I'm not wasting time on some goose chase. And if this is an operation with more than one person then I'll eliminate all of them. Every last scumbag one of em.

        I hadn't seen Rocco come up behind Matteo, but he heard my order and placed a hand on my goon telling him to hold on. "Do you think that's wise? It could be dangerous for you. They'll wanna take you out so you don't try and take them out" my brother pointed out the obvious to me. 

"I don't give a fuck" I stated plainly. Of course the third of the musketeers showed up at this exact moment and asked what he missed. Rocco gave him the cliff notes and both of them slid into the booth with me, even though I really didn't ask them to.

"Give our goons another day before you start calling big shots, huh buddy?" Dante leaned an elbow on the table to look at me. I stared forward as I had been.

        "No. I'm done waiting and I'm done giving chances. I warned Van Dijk multiple times that he needed to get his men in check. He already lost four of them to us, but clearly the old man has lost his touch. He's not running the show anymore and I need to know who is."